Just The Girl
by WrenWinterSong
Summary: When Scorpius, Rose, and Albus go to Castelobruxo as part of an exchange program, Scorpius plans to finally convince Rose to fall for him. Unfortunately, he doesn't know the history that's between Granger girls and foreign wizards.


**Author's Note:** This fic was written for Debs1990, Princessss, and WhyNotWriteFanfiction for winning the second round of the Shipping Wars Competition. The prompts that they gave me were waterfall, sunset, and 'Just The Girl' by The Click Five. That song should be the official anthem for Scorose, and you should definitely give it a listen before, after, or while you read this. Hope you three enjoy this! It's a lot fluffier than I usually write. :) I also attempted to include some culture and language in this. Please forgive me if anything is glaringly wrong and feel free to point it out!

* * *

 _She laughs at my dreams, but I dream about her laughter_

 _Strange as it seems, she's the one I'm after_

"I'm telling you, this trip is timed perfectly in my month of luck," Scorpius said as he and Albus stood on the steps of the dock jutting out into the English Channel. "First the Quidditch Cup, then the House Cup. If ever there was a time to make a final move on Rose, now is it!"

Albus clapped Scorpius' shoulder. "I'll be at your funeral, mate."

"I won't be," Rose said. She glanced up from her pocketbook guide to Brazil to purse her lips at Scorpius. "Has anyone ever told you that you talk too loud?"

Scorpius smiled up at where she leaned against the dock railing. "It's not that I talk loud. I've simply got a deep voice. It carries."

"It's annoying," she said, ducking her head down to continue her reading.

Out on the dock, the rest of the Hogwarts students headed for Brazil gathered, waiting for their boat to arrive. Two students from each House would be spending a fortnight at Castelobruxo as part of an exchange program. The school year had ended for the rest of the Hogwarts students, but the soon-to-be seventh-years standing on the dock buzzed with more excitement than a lot of first-years on their first day.

"What if they hate us?" Polly Chapman asked Rose as she fiddled with her school robes. "Remember the bright green robes Gabriela and Larissa showed up with in December? They're all going to laugh at these dingy, black things."

"No, they won't," Rose said, not looking up from her pocketbook. "Besides, we're going there to learn, not trade fashion advice."

Scorpius opened his mouth to make some sort of comment—as usual, he didn't know the exact words, but he'd figure it out as he started talking—but then the other students shouted and pointed at the boat in the distance. Like the Knight Bus, it ploughed through the water at impossible speeds; one moment, it was on the horizon, and the next, it had parked itself beside the dock.

"I'd save your compliments until after we're on land again," Albus said he saw Scorpius eyeing Rose. "Tossing you into the ocean might be too much of a temptation for her to resist."

~oOo~

 _And the more she ignores me, the more I adore her_

 _What can I do? I'd do anything for her_

Both Rafael and Marcos laughed when Scorpius reiterated his plans to woo Rose while in Brazil. Unlike Albus, who only ever shook his head or made a snide comment, their Brazilian pen pals were merciless.

"Papo furado," Rafael said as he chuckled. "You can chry, but you are going choo fail."

Marcos put an arm around Scorpius' arms—too short to reach his shoulders—and gave a sympathetic squeeze. "Sorry, bicho, but you have no chance with that boneca."

Scorpius shrugged both of them off, trudging ahead of them on the jungle path to the greenhouse, then turning to walk backwards. "Things have changed a bit since December."

"I doubt it," Marcos said, shaking his head. "Looks like you made zero progress."

Rafael snickered. "Maybe not zero. At least he chook off that mistletoe hat."

"Go on, taken the mickey," Scorpius said as even Albus joined in on the laughter. He spun back around to see Rose's bright red hair tied up in a bun on the top of her head and bobbing along at the front of the pack. Even though she'd spent the last two days ignoring him like they were first-years again, Scorpius knew the time was right.

The past two years had made quite a difference to Rose and Scorpius' relationship. He even dared to refer to her as a friend, something Rose didn't exactly have a lot of. She could be considered popular in the sense that everyone at Hogwarts knew her and liked her and thought they were her best friend. In reality, she spent most of her time alone in the library where Albus and Scorpius often joined her just to see how long it would take for her to kick them out of her table. Recently, they managed to stay long enough to actually do their own homework, even if Scorpius spent half the time watching Rose's quill fly across her parchment. That was magic. Though not quite as mesmerising as seeing her on the Quidditch pitch. Scorpius may have given up the Snitch during his first game as he watched her score an impressive goal.

"Chake some advice and stop staring," Marcos said, hopping up to ruffle Scorpius' hair.

~oOo~

 _Cause she's bittersweet_

 _She knocks me off of my feet_

 _And I can't help myself, I don't want anyone else_

The first weekend came fast, and their Brazilian pen pals took a break from revising for the midterm exams to guide the Hogwarts students through the Amazon forest. Like England, everything was green and wet, but there were no roads or paths cutting through. All the plants were crowded together, creating a dense landscape that the northerners struggled to navigate.

"Almost there!" Rafael called back from the front of the group. Scorpius pulled his gaze away from the hazardous vines to see Rose beside the hulking Brazilian, staring over at Scorpius and Albus with a superior smile. How the hell did she manage to be the best at literally everything?

Scorpius picked up his pace, but he and Albus were still the last ones to emerge from the greenery and onto the slick surface of their apparent destination. The ground turned into one giant rock, marbled with tan and orange lines. It dipped in the centre where water about half a meter deep rushed by.

"The view is over here, caras!" Marcos shouted, waving Scorpius and Albus over to where the rest of the group stood on the cliff's edge.

"I take back what I said about Rose tossing you into the ocean," Albus said as he and Scorpius approached the edge and stared down at the tops of giant Amazon trees. "Pushing you over this waterfall seems much more tempting."

Scorpius chuckled, too exhilarated by staring over the drop to go on the defence. This place was amazing. England must have been such a disappointment to the Castelobruxo students. Scorpius glanced up to tell Rafael and Marcos exactly that when his eyes automatically went straight for Rose. He couldn't look away from her white smile or wide eyes. Or the hand that clutched Rafael's arm as she leaned out over the edge.

~oOo~

 _She's cold and she's cruel, but she knows what she's going_

 _Knows just what to say so my whole day is ruined_

Scorpius didn't know what to do with this new jealousy. He'd never dealt with it before. No one else besides Rose could make him feel like that, and she'd never before had the time or interest for blokes that weren't in her family. All those envious feelings put quite a damper on his last week in Brazil, not to mention his plans for getting Rose to fall for him.

"We're in a big romantic jungle, mate," Albus said as they ate their last meal in the main hall of Castelobruxo that Scorpius barely touched as he watched Rose and Rafael chatting at the next table. "It'll pass once they remember they don't live on the same continent."

Scorpius groaned. "It'll be too late by then. _I_ wanted to use the 'big romantic jungle' excuse. It was supposed to be my big chance." He slouched in his seat, dropping his head into his hands.

Albus shook his head, digging into his bowl of moqueca and ignoring his best friend's dramatics. "It's not like you had that big of a chance anyways," he said between mouthfuls. "And you've still got one more year to try."

Those hopeful words only made Scorpius feel worse. Albus never gave Scorpius hope that things would work out with Rose. The situation must have been worse than he thought.

As the students filed down the large stone staircase of the temple to get in one last impromptu Quidditch game before nightfall, Scorpius lagged behind. He declined to play the first round and sat in the back of the crowd that watched the players fly into the air. Of course, Rose was up there, her hair flying back behind her as she made the first goal through the branches of a tree. Scorpius noticed the way Rose's hand clasped Rafael's after they high-fived, and he made some sort of excuse to Albus before climbing back up the temple stairs and inside.

Castelobruxo had more stairs than any place Scorpius had ever been—and that included Hogwarts—so he'd broken a sweat by the time he reached the library. Books were a complicated comfort that brought on memories of loneliness as he read every history book he could get his hands on when he was a kid. He didn't have a friend like Albus back then. He didn't have any friends at all.

He grabbed a random book from a shelf he passed, not bothering to see what it was until he sat down in one of the armchairs that faced out one of many large windows. As he read the words in the fading sunlight, he realised he'd picked up the most boring book about architecture and doubted he could find anything duller in all of Brazil if he tried. He skimmed through the pages, learning more about ancient Muggle construction and a dozen types of rock than he ever wanted to know.

"Oh!"

Scorpius jumped at the sudden voice, turning to see Rose staring at him like he'd unexpectedly Apparated right in front of her. "What are you doing here?" she asked.

"Just… reading," Scorpius said, glancing down at the page he'd been on. "It's my last chance to read up on, er, Brazilian… stuff."

"Yes," Rose said as if she'd finally found an answer. "Yes, that's what I'm doing too."

Scorpius glanced down at her empty hands. "Reading without a book. That's some pretty advanced magic."

"I haven't picked one out yet." She crossed her arms and gave him a glare he couldn't argue with, even as she sat down in the armchair beside his with still no books in hand.

"You're sweating," Scorpius said as he got a good look at Rose and noticed her bright red face gleaming in the orange light.

"Thanks, I hadn't noticed," Rose grumbled. "I did just run up eleven flights of stairs."

"You look flustered," Scorpius said, not buying the excuse. Rose did not tire easily; she probably ran up and down twenty flights of stairs for a warm-up. She looked more than out-of-breath.

Rose sunk lower in her seat, staring out the window. "I'm not, and I'm fine," she said through gritted teeth.

Scorpius held back from pointing out how unconvincing that was and instead watched the sunset glow against her face. Her pale skin reflected the light perfectly, turning yellow then red then purple.

"Rose—"

"We were having such a nice silent moment," she said, interrupting him.

"I know, I know, but I have to say something." Scorpius grew excited at his courage, scooting his armchair closer to hers.

She cocked an eyebrow at him. "Scorpius, what are you doing?"

"I'm going to kiss you," he said. "And you don't have to kiss me back—you don't even have to like it—but it's what's happening. Speak now if you want to stop me."

Before Rose could respond, Scorpius leaned towards her, his lips aimed at hers. Then her hand flew up and slapped him across the face.

~oOo~

 _She's a mystery_

 _She's too much for me_

 _But I keep coming back for more_

Scorpius really didn't want to go to the Burrow, but he doubted the Potters would let him stay at Grimmauld Place alone. It was the last day in August, and as per tradition, Albus' grandparents gathered everyone at their home for a big family dinner. Scorpius didn't know if it was a big family thing or just a Weasley thing, but these dinners happened on nearly every occasion that their grandparents could find.

Being the middle of the week, the Burrow looked deserted when Scorpius, Albus, Lily, and Mrs Potter arrived, but as soon as the clock stroked six, Weasleys of all ages began popping through the chimney. Rose arrived with her dad in the middle of dinner, having closed up the family shop late because of the end-of-the-summer rush. Scorpius hadn't seen her since they got off the boat two months ago, and she did a fantastic job of looking in any other direction besides the one where Scorpius was. "She didn't even glare at us," Albus muttered as Rose took her seat at the other end of the table. "What did you do to piss her off?"

"The usual, I guess," Scorpius said with a shrug, relieved when Albus didn't push it. He hadn't told almost about the whole kiss-turned-to-violence incidence and now did not seem like a good time to do so.

Everyone rushed out to the garden as soon as they finished eating—no one wanted to stay in the cramped dining room longer than necessary—and sprinted towards the orchard. Scorpius noticed Rose drifting away from the group and doubling back towards the house. Albus sighed. "You're going to go after her, aren't you?"

Scorpius had already taken several steps backwards. "I'll be back in time for the second match, I promise," he said before jogging away.

Before he reached the Burrow, he saw Rose climbing into an old treehouse. Without thinking of whether he should or not, he climbed up after her and hoisted himself into a tiny wooden square room. Rose stood in one corner, her arms crossed and foot tapping. "Are you still stalking me?" she asked.

"Can't seem to stop," Scorpius said, pulling himself up and hitting his hand against the roof as he stood. Rose rolled her eyes but sat herself on the floor, giving Scorpius an expectant look. He grabbed the opportunity and nearly bruised his tailbone sitting beside her.

They sat in silence for a few minutes while Scorpius watched her foot sway back and forth on its heel. Every time it stilled, he prepared himself for whatever Rose had to say, but then it would start up again. After about five times of that, Scorpius finally said, "Would now be a good time to ask why you hit me at Castelobruxo?"

Rose glared at him from the corner of her eye. "You kissed me without asking!"

"I mean… yeah, I did." Scorpius rubbed the back of his neck. "Though, to be fair, I did give you plenty of warning. A simple 'no, thanks' would have done the trick."

"I know," Rose said, her face softening into an almost guilty look. She paused long enough for Scorpius to fight the urge to something again, but then she said, "You were right." She looked both shocked and horrified at her words. "I can't believe I said that."

"Me either." Scorpius leaned forward to see her face, honestly concerned for her health now. "But, um, you should probably maybe tell me what it was I was right about."

Instead of her normal annoyed glare, Rose glanced at Scorpius with an honest and hesitant expression. "That last night," she said, "I _was_ upset about something."

Scorpius waited for her to go on, but when she kept quiet like that was all she had to say, he asked, "What happened?"

"It was stupid," Rose said, pulling her legs up to her chest and hugging her knees. "Besides, I'd feel weird talking to _you_ about it."

"Why would it be weird? We're still friends, right?"

Rose groaned. "I guess. I still don't know how that happened."

"I knew I'd grow on you eventually," Scorpius said with a smile.

Rose fiddled with a loose thread on her jumper, stalling until Scorpius nudged her elbow. "Fine," she said, taking a deep breath. "Rafael kissed me."

Scorpius blinked at her as he felt his heart wilting away. "And that was upsetting?"

"The kiss itself wasn't, no," Rose said, her cheeks blushing pink. "It was actually kind of nice."

"We can skip that part."

Rose chuckled, but her smile fell as soon as she started speaking again. "It's just that… it was my first one… And it happened in front of everyone after the Quidditch match, and I obviously didn't know what I was doing. It was _embarrassing_." Her shoulders shuddered. "Besides, I always thought my first kiss would be with someone I would actually date."

"You don't want to date him?" Scorpius asked with blatant hope.

"It's simply not logical," Rose said. "He lives all the way in Brazil, and even sending him a letter takes weeks. It wouldn't work."

Scorpius smiled, glad to hear that Albus had been right about them, but Rose wasn't looking at him. She bit her lip, then added, "And then you tried to kiss me. I mean, before that, I'd never kissed anyone, and then I was about to kiss two different blokes in the same night!" She threw up her hands like that was the most scandalous thing she had ever heard of, then she glanced at him with a sheepish smile. "I suppose I might have overreacted a little by hitting you."

"Maybe a little bit," Scorpius said, rubbing his cheek. "It still feels a little sore sometimes."

Rose raised an eyebrow. "And what? A kiss will make it all better?"

"It couldn't hurt to try," Scorpius said with a smirk.

Rose rolled her eyes, but as Scorpius lowered his hand back into his lap, she leaned over and kissed his cheek. Scorpius' mouth fell open, and he stared at Rose as she gave him a mischievous smile.

"Did you just… Hold on… Wow… Merlin, wow… Are you… Are we—"

"Do you ever shut up?" Rose asked.

"No, not usually, but seriously, did you just kiss me? Can we talk about that—"

Scorpius shut up as Rose leaned in again, this time her lips connecting to his. Scorpius' mind went blank, too shocked to even tell his body to move or kiss her back. Then it was over, and Rose was climbing down the ladder of the treehouse.

"Wait!" Scorpius dived forward and stuck his head out over the hole in the floor. "Are you seriously leaving right now? No explanation? No encore?"

Rose shook her head as she jumped to the ground. "Goodbye, Scorpius!" she called up with a wave before walking off.

Scorpius' back hit the wall as he sat back inside the treehouse, staring at the place where Rose Granger-Weasley had just kissed him. She'd kissed him! Sure, she practically ran away right afterwards, but that didn't matter. What mattered was that her mouth had been on his, completely voluntarily!

She'd said that she had wanted her first kiss to be with someone she could date. Scorpius wondered if the same went for second kisses too.


End file.
